30TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME A
CAN’T GO WRONG WITH LOVE
MT 22: 34-40
MESSAGE:
One of the most successful Catholic YouTubers focuses exclusively on the lives of saints. Each new post quickly garners hundreds of instant views. Why? It’s because saints continue to captivate people today; their lives embody a living gospel that resonates with modern audiences. In the tradition of the Church, the lives of saints are cherished as important monuments. Saints grasped the Lord Jesus’ teaching in today’s Gospel—love expressed in two inseparable dimensions.
LOVE OF GOD pertains to worship, but not in the sense of mere habit, tradition, or compliance. True love of God entails the complete offering of oneself to Him who loved us first. He deserves all our heart, mind, and soul as we engage in prayer, partake in the sacraments, and follow His will in our daily lives. LOVE OF NEIGHBOR pertains to service, again, not pretended, not transactional, not coerced, but flowing naturally from our understanding and love of ourselves as blessed and gifted by the Lord. We serve because we view others as extensions of ourselves, as our brothers and sisters in Christ. Just as we are attuned to the Lord in worship, we also sensitively respond to the circumstances of those around us—their pain, loneliness, sickness, and loss.
While this teaching on love is admirable, it’s not without its challenges, which is why it was codified as a law in Israel. However, the Lord Jesus demonstrates that this teaching is not impossible, as its underlying foundation is love, not coercion or fear. The saints serve as examples, illustrating that it’s possible to love—not necessarily flawlessly, but in our own small ways, each day.
REFLECT:
Can we genuinely love God without loving our neighbor? Can we exclusively love our neighbor while neglecting our need for God? During Mass, let us pray for the wisdom of the saints, who, through the grace of the Lord Jesus, learned to love in a complete and integrated manner. It’s God above all, yes! But it’s also God in our neighbors and God through our neighbors.
“Let us pray daily for peace in our hearts, in our country, and in the world, esp. in the Middle East, Ukraine, and in other parts of the world in volatile situations. Lord, grant us Your peace! Amen.”
ourparishpriest 2023
